Selective Service System: Difference between revisions

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The question of drafting Black men caused much controversy as President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] had promised several African-American civil rights leaders in 1940 that the draft would be a color-blind one and in fact the Selective Service Act of 1940 stated "there shall be no discrimination against any person on the account of race or color".{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}} However, the U.S. military practiced segregation during the war as Black Americans did not serve alongside men of other races and in practice Black men were only drafted to keep the all Black units of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Army Air Force up to strength.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}} Furthermore, the military as a general rule preferred to use Black servicemen only in menial roles and as much as possible tried to avoid sending African-Americans into combat out of a belief that Black men were not brave enough.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}} As such, the U.S. Army in particular did not form many divisions out of the Black men drafted, which limited the number of African-Americans subject to the draft.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}} As a result of these practices, in early 1943 African-Americans made up 10.6% of the American population, but only 6% of the men serving in the military.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}}

The issue of conscientious objectors was a controversial one during the war..{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=633}} In World War One, only the so-called "peace churches", namely the Mennonites, the Quakers and the Brethren had been allowed to reject national service on grounds of conscience..{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=633}} The 1940 Selective Service Act allowed the same exemption to the "peace churches", but also allowed anyone "who, by reason of religious training or belief, is conscientiously opposed to participation in war in any form".{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=633}} In practice, draft boards would exempt anyone who prove they were opposed to war on grounds of some sort of religious belief, which allowed more to claim conscientious objectors status than been the case in World War One..{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=633}} About 75,000 Americans called for national service claimed conscientious objector status, and about half of these claims were accepted by the draft boards.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=633}} Married men were exempt from the draft and in late 1940 about 40% called up for the draft were able to evade it by promptly getting married.{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634}} In February 1942, General Hershey, who was in charge of the draft, complained "that most of the recent marriages...might have been for the purpose of evading the draft".{{sfn|Kennedy|1999|p=634-635}}

In his 1945 [[1945 State of the Union Address|State of the Union address]], President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] requested that the draft be expanded to include female nurses (male nurses were not allowed), to overcome a shortage that was endangering military medical care. This began a debate over the drafting of all women, which was defeated in the House of Representatives. A bill to draft nurses was passed by the House, but died without a vote in the Senate. The publicity caused more nurses to volunteer and agencies streamlined recruiting.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.historynet.com/drafting-women.htm |title = Drafting Women? |date = 6 August 2016 |author = Joseph Connor |publisher = World War II Magazine}}</ref>